Fire-box arch block



April 12, 192 7.

L. S. ABBOTT FIRE 80X ARCH BLOCK Filed NOV. 9, 1925 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR LYLE STOCKTON ABBOT T a the tube.

Patented Apr. 12, 1927.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

LYLE STOCKTON ABBOTT, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO CHICAGO FIRE BRICK COMPANY, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION OF ILLINOIS.

FIRE-BOX ARCH BLOCK.

Application filed November My invention relates to fire box arch blocks and more particularly to the side blocks of fire arches in fire box boilers such as locomotive boilers.

My invention more particularly relates to the brick or block used at the sides of the arches that rests at one end thereof upon a support such as a water cooled tube and at its other end against the side sheet of the fire. box. Said bricks or blocks are ordinarily arranged in an inclined position. The supporting tubes or members are also inclined and as a result, the side bricks or blocks of sectional fire arches are ordinarily inclined in a plurality of directions so that one corner thereof is lowermost. The result is that said bricks or blocks are in a relatively unstable position and it is a purpose of my invention to provide a side block or brick that is stable when in position in the arch.

The sectional arches in fire box boilers, such as locomotive boilers, comprise inter mediate blocks and side blocks of refractory material the intermediate blocks being arranged in rows and being supported upon the tubes through which water circulates, while the side blocks are supported only at one end on the tubes while the other end bears against the sides of the fire box at a higher elevation than the end support on This causes the bricks to be inclined not only in the direction of the inclination of the tubes and the intermediate bricks or blocks, but also to be inclined transversely of the fire box causes the one corner to be lowermost, while the diagonally opposite corner is uppermost. In the form of bricks or blocks used up to the time of my invention, the difiiculty has been experienced that due to the fact that the bricks or blocks are positioned with theone corner lowermost, the same are in unstable equilibrium and accordingly are easily jarred loose and tend to drop into the fire, thus causing a hole in the arch which is very undesirable and causes damage to the crown sheet and cuts down the efliciency of the boiler.

The side bricks or blocks previously used have the side edges thereof extending substantially at right angles to the edge in engagement with the tube or other inclined supporting member. Accordingly, as the brick or block is inclined transversely, the

9, 1925. Serial- No. 67,915.

center of gravity moves away from the center of the base or bottom edge engaging the tube or other support. This brings about an instability of said side bricks or blocks which causes the said side bricks or blocks to be readily displaced under the stress due to shocks in stopping or starting of the locomotive.

Itis accordingly, a further purpose of my inventlon to provide a side brick or block of refractory material having the side faces thereof extending preferably in parallelism, but at an oblique angle to the edge thereof engaging with the supporting tube.

The inclination of the sides is such that theuppermost side of a brick orblock when in position in the fire box extends at a greater angle than a right angle to the said sup porting edge with the lower side edge extending at an angle correspondingly less than a right angle to said supporting edge. This throws the material of the brick upwardly beyond where it would lie if the sides extended at right angles to the supporting edge as is commonly the case. The result is that when the bricks or blocks are mounted with one corner lowermost and inclined both longitudinally and transversely of the fire box, the instability will be corrected to an extent depending upon the angle at which the sides extend. The said sides preferably extend at such an angle that the center of gravity of the brick acts substantially at the middle of the supporting edge in engagement with the sup porting tube.

It is another purpose of the invention to provide a bearing face between the supporting edge and the side edge of the brick or block of refractory material for transmitting the thrust of the upper blocks or bricks to the lower blocks or bricks and finally to the flue sheet of the boiler through a suitable spacing device or block.

It is another purpose of the invention to so incline the sides of the side bricks or blocks relative to the supporting edge that said side bricks or blocks lie substantially in alignment with the sides edges of the transverse rows of intermediate bricks or blocks.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will appear as the description of the accompanying drawings proceeds. However, I desire to have it distinctly understood that I do not intend to limit myself to the exact details shown or described, but that I intend to include as part of my invention all such obvious changes and modifications of parts as would occur to a person skilled in this art and as would fall within the scope of the claims.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view of a portion of a fire box and boiler showing my improved. arch construction applied thereto;

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary plan view thereof Fig. 3 is a perspective View of one of my improved side blocks or bricks;

Fig. at is a plan View thereof detached from the arch; and

Fig. 5 is a section taken on the line 5-5 of Fig. 4:.

Referring in detail to the drawings, my improved arch is shown as being applied to a furnace having a grate 10 under the boiler 11 which is provided with the fines 12 and which has a front wall 13 in communication with the interior of the boiler 11 and provided with a fuel feeding opening 14. The fines are mounted in a flue sheet 15 which has an inclined portion 151 extending downwardly toward the grate 10 and a crown sheet 16 is provided for the boiler to complete the fire box indicated by the numeral 17. Extending through the fire box are the inclined arch supporting tubes 18 through which water circulates from the water leg portion 19 to the hollow front wall 13 of the boiler.

Mounted upon the tubes 18 are the inter media e arch blocks 20 which are preferably rectangular in shape and arranged in transverse rows on the tubes 18, the top surfaces thereof lying substantially in a plane which is inclined similarly to the tubes 18; and the side blocks 21 which pariicularly form the subject matter of my invention.

One of said side blocks is shown in perspective in Fig. 3. The end that is foremost in Fig. 3 is the end of the block that is engaged with one of the tubes 18 lying at the sides of the series of tubes. Said tube engaging face is indicated by the numeral 22 in Fig. 41 and as will be clear from Fig. 5, is preferablyprovided with a concave portion or groove 23 which engages with the tube 18 and is preferably cut away at an oblique angle or bevelled as indicated at 24. As will be clear from Fig. 5, the top and bottom faces 25 and 26 are substantially parallel and extend at right angles to the side faces 27 and 28. The side faces 27 and 28, however, extend at an oblique angle to the tube engaging face 22, as will be clear from Fig. 4, and are connected with the face 22 by means of the short bearing faces 29 and 30 which extend substantially at right angles to the face 22 and receive the thrust from each higher to the adjoining lower block substantially parallel to the supporting member. The end of the block opposite the end that bears on the tube is provided with a pluralii y of faces 31 that incline toward the middle portion. of said end both from the top and bottom 25 and 26 and from the sides 27 and 28.

The blocks or bricks 21 are arranged in the arch as shown in Figs. 1 and 2 with the bevelled faces 31 adjacent the side walls 32 of the fire box and the edges 22 thereof adjacent the intermediate members 20. The side edges 27 and 28 then he substantially in alignment with the side edges of the blocks 20 in transverse rows, as will be evident from Fig. 2. I

The blocks or bricks 21 are arranged in the arch as Shown in Figs. 1 and 2 with the bevelled faces 31 adjacent the side walls 32 of the fire box and the edges 22 thereof adjacent the intermediate members 20. The side edges 27 and 28 then he substantially in alignment with the side edges of the blocks 20 in transverse rows, as will be evident from Fig. 2. In placing the bricks or blocks in position, suitable spacing blocks or tiles 33 are placed in engagement with the flue sheet 15 and upon the tubular members 18. Then 1 he lowermost row of intermediate and side blocks 20 and 21 is placed in position and the successive rows are built up until the arch reaches substantially the bend in the tubes 18 when it is completed. Due to the fact that the walls 32 approach each other toward the front wall 13, each successive block 21, as it is placed in position, is tilted ata greater transverse angle relative to the blocks 20. In order to permit of this tilting without any binding action, the faces 31 are provided, the blocks resting on the side walls .13 substantially on the apex on the end having said faces 31.

It will also be seen from Fig. 2, that the face 29 on one block 21 engages with the face 30 of the adjoining block 21 and that the pressure of the upper blocks is transmitted to the lower blocks in the direction of the length of the tubes 18 through the faces 29 and 30 to the spacing blocks 33 and to the flue sheet 15. If the faces 29 and 30 were not provided and the sides 27 and 28 extended directly from the face or end 22, the blocks would tend to slide on each other at their lower ends instead of the thrust being transmitted perpendicularly to the side faces of the blocks. However, by providing the faces 29 and 30, the thrust is transmitted perpendicular to said faces.

It will be noted that the side blocks or bricks are reversible, that is, that they can be used at either side of the arch. For example, with the face 25 upward, they would be arranged on the side of the arch that is uppermost in Fig. 2. In order to use the same on the opposite side of'the arch, all that is necessary is to turn the face 26 upward in placing the blocks or bricks in position. This is particularly desirable as it makes it unnecessary to provide right and left hand blocks, reduces the cost of manufacture and reduces the number of differently shaped blocks or bricks which must be kept on hand at repair shops. \Vhile a substantially semi-cylindrical groove is shown in the drawings in the end of the block that engages the supporting tube, obviously this may be varied without departing from the invention.

Having thus described my invention, What I desire to claim and secure by United States Letters Patent is:

1. The combination with a side wall, of an arch having an upwardly inclined supporting member extending longitudinally of said side wall and spaced therefrom, and a block of refractory material supported by said side wall and said supporting member and inclined upwardly from said supporting member to said side wall with its lower edge substantially parallel to said supporting member, the major portion of said block extending upwardly in the direction of inclination of said supporting member at an angle to a line drawn perpendicular to said lower edge in the plane of said block.

2. The combination with a side wall, of an arch having an upwardly inclined supporting member extending longitudinally of said side wall and spaced therefrom, and a block of refractory material supported by said side wall and said supporting member and inclined upwardly from said supporting member to said side wall with its lower edge substantially parallel to said supporting member, said block being extended upwardly in the direction of inclination of said inclined supporting member with re spect to said lower edge whereby the greater portion of the block lies upwardly from a plane through the block perpendicular to and bisecting said lower edge.

3. The combination with a side wall, of an arch having an inclined supporting member, and a block of refractory material supported by said side wall and said supporting member so as to incline upwardly from said supporting member to said side wall with its lower edge substantially parallel to said support ng member, said block having side faces inclined at an oblique angle to said lower edge, and short faces extending substantially at right angles to said lower edge lying between said lower edge and said side faces.

l. The combination with a side wall, of an arch having an inclined supporting member, and a block of refractory material supported by said side wall and said supporting member so as to incline upwardly from said supporting member to said side wall with its lower edge substantially parallel to said supporting member, said block having substantially parallel side faces inclined at an oblique angle to said lower edge.

5. A refractory block having a grooved end face and side faces certain of which are inclined at an oblique angle to said grooved face in the same general direction, toproject the opposite end of said block laterally relative to the grooved end thereof.

6. A refractory block having a grooved end face, side faces inclined at an oblique angle to said grooved end face in the same general direction and additional side faces between said first named side faces and said end face extending substantially at right angles to the grooved end face. 7

7. In a fire box, side walls, inclined supporting members and refractory members comprising intermediate blocks supported by said supporting members arranged in transverse rows and non-rectangular side blocks inclined upwardly relatively to said intermediate blocks having the greater portion of their side edges which extend transversely of said fire box lying in vertical planes parallel to the transversely extending side edges of the rows of intermediate blocks.

In witness whereof, I hereunto subscribe my name this 6th day of November A. D.,

LYLE STOCKTON ABBOTT. 

